At the talks. Photo: Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu on March 3 held talks in Hanoi with Katrina Cooper, deputy secretary for Southeast Asia and Global Partners Group at the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, reported VNA.

The relationship between Vietnam and Australia is developing strongly and at its best ever, said Vu stressing that Vietnam highly valued its strategic partnership with Australia.

He thanked Australia for its timely supply of 7.8 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines and other medical materials, becoming Vietnam’s second-biggest vaccine donor.

Cooper, who paid a visit to Vietnam from March 2-4, said Australia appreciated Vietnam’s role and position in the region.

She affirmed Australia's efforts to promote the strategic partnership in all cooperation pillars, especially as the two nations will celebrate the 50th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties in 2023.

The two officials shared the view that despite the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam and Australia have maintained all-level meetings, and regularly and flexibly implemented bilateral cooperation.

Economic and trade collaboration continued to be a bright spot in bilateral relations, with two-way trade reaching USD 12.4 billion in 2021, up nearly 50% year-on-year.

Vietnam's export turnover to Australia topped USD 4.45 billion, up 23% while its import was about USD 7.95 billion, a year-on-year rise of 70%.

With this trade volume, Vietnam becomes Australia’s 12th biggest trading partner and Australia is Vietnam's 10th biggest.

Photo: Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs

They both also compared notes on specific measures to enhance cooperation in such spheres as national defense-security, education-training, official development assistance, green growth, high-tech agriculture, climate change response, and Mekong collaboration, along with new pillars, towards the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Regarding the East Sea issue, both officials held that disputes must be addressed peacefully in line with international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

They also exchanged views on other regional and international issues of shared concern.

Australia’s ASEAN Senior Official Katrina Cooper meets with Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations Le Hoai Trung. Source: Australian embassy

Australia’s ASEAN Senior Official Katrina Cooper with acting ASEAN Senior Official Vu Ho. Source: Australian embassy

Cooper also paid a courtesy visit to Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations Le Hoai Trung; worked with Vietnam's acting head of the ASEAN Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM) delegation, Vu Ho; attended the Mekong seminar at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam and met a number of Australian and Vietnamese businesses and partners.

Vietnam-Australia relations are developing despite Covid-19. The Prime Ministers of the two countries announced the bilateral Enhanced Economic Engagement Strategy in November 2021. During Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne’s visit to Vietnam last year, the two countries agreed to work towards a comprehensive strategic partnership in early February 2023 at the earliest.

The prospect of trade between Vietnam and Australia in 2022 is great as the two countries are now members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership – an inclusive and open new-generation trade agreement.

In addition, the two countries have completed the Enhanced Economic Engagement Strategy, which sets out a roadmap to increase trade and investment opportunities, forging closer ties between the two countries.

The Australian Government also has committed AUD 4.9 million (USD 3.53 million) of investment in Vietnam's venture fund Ascend Vietnam Ventures to assist local startups, according to the Australian Embassy in Vietnam.

The amount raises total Australian private investment in the rising Vietnamese technology startup market to AUD 70 million.

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